Making round drawer knobs, no lathe required

I wanted to make some round drawer knobs for some nightstands I was building, using the same oak I used for the rest of the table.

I started by drawing a circle on a piece of oak, about 23 mm thick (about 7/8"), then drilling a 1/2" hole in the middle.

I then cut that at an angle on the bandsaw, with the table angled about 25 degrees. Note that the workpiece is left of the blade. I started cutting it the wrong way on the right side (oops), so I had to start again.

This produces a nice conical shape.

Then gluing a short 1/2" dowel into the hole.

I spun the knob against my big strip sander, though most belt sanders or disk sanders would do for the job. I used another piece of wood with a notch cut in it to steady the knob as I spun it.

I wanted a conical knob, so I didn't need to sand very much off. I also sanded the edges round.

After that I cut the dowel to length, ready to be glued to the front of the drawer. But I saved gluing it in until after the drawer is varnished. It's easier to do a good job with the varnish without the knob in the way.